MPS-Newsflash August 2019

Published: 30 August 2019

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MPS-ABC, MPS-GAP and MPS-SQ for Guatemalan grower

Three MPS certificates in a row: a fantastic achievement that Ter Laak Americas can proudly share with its customers. At the end of June, the orchid nursery in Jalapa, Guatemala was the first company of its kind in Central and South America to receive not only the MPS-ABC certificate, but also the MPS-GAP and MPS-SQ certificates. Obtaining all these certificates is a significant challenge for growers in this region. Pedro Luna, manager of Ter Laak Americas, is very proud of the result. “We strongly believe that sustainability is the future for us all.”

Ter Laak Americas was established in 2015, when three partners joined forces to start a one-hectare orchid nursery to grow flowering plants for the local market and young plants for the export market. One of the partners is Ter Laak Orchids, a Dutch company that already holds MPS-ABC, MPS-GAP and MPS-SQ certificates and participates in the MPS-ProductProof scheme. Luna: “That helped us to meet the criteria, since we were already doing many of the things that the scheme requires.” The MPS-GAP certificate covers traceability, sustainability, safety and hygiene, while MPS-SQ focuses on proper working conditions.

Profitable and sustainable
The greenhouse in Jalapa features innovations such as three-layered plastic walls that reduce energy consumption, organic waste composting, energy and shadow-generating screens and rainwater collection. “Our strategy is to be both profitable and sustainable, while providing our employees with the pleasant working environment they deserve,” says Luna. Local employees are the driving force behind the company. “We have 25 permanent employees, and we provide them with meals during the breaks. Any leftovers are fed to the pigs and sheep.”

Sustainable enterprise is becoming increasingly important in Central and South America. Arthij van de Veer, MPS coordinator in North and Central America explains: “This is due to growing awareness among both entrepreneurs and their customers. Customers are making more demands with respect to sustainability, so growers are responding by exploring the possibilities. It’s a gradual process, but if you compare today’s situation with how things were a decade ago, you can see a definite increase in awareness.”

Respect for the environment and human rights
Luna is extremely proud of the three MPS certificates. “We can now demonstrate to our customers that our orchids are a product of sustainable cultivation practices, and that we respect human rights. We hope to inspire other growers to increase the sustainability of their enterprises too.” What’s more, Luna concludes: “Certification helps you to monitor your production processes. The more data you gather, the greater your understanding will be, and the better you’ll be able to perform as a company.”

MPS organizes two meetings in Central America, in collaboration with FSI2020. The central topic of these meetings is how current market developments influence management.

The following topics will also be discussed:

the vision of Dutch Flower Group and Koppert Biological Systems on sustainability and developments within FSI;

update on the project ‘Chain Transparency’ (more about this in the next MPS-Newsflash as well);

traceability throughout the whole chain;

how consumer's demands influence the production chain;

deployment of IPM (Integrated Pest Management).

If you operate in Central America and are interested in attending one of these meetings, then please contact:
Remco Jansen, Commercial ManagerT +31 (0) 6 51 27 40 01EThis email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Transforming local green waste into sustainable energy for growers

Local green waste that would otherwise leave the province is being converted into sustainable energy in a biomass plant by three MPS-ECAS certified growers. ‘With the biomass plant, we’re reducing gas consumption and CO2 emissions and using sustainable CO2 to let the plants grow better,’ explains Pleun van Duijn, an aubergine grower and one of the project initiators.

The three growers – VOF Prominent Grevelingen (tomatoes), DT van Noord Tomaten B.V. (tomatoes) and Gebr. van Duijn (aubergines) – have united to form DES, which stands for Duurzaam Energie Sirjansland (Sustainable Energy Sirjansland). The companies have acquired various certificates from MPS-ECAS, including GLOBALG.A.P. and On the way to PlanetProof. These certification schemes let organisations consider how to make their production process more sustainable.

Aubergine grower Pleun van Duijn at the CO2 capture installation

100 tonnes of green waste
‘We started the plant with the aim of making our businesses more sustainable,’ explains Van Duijn. The three businesses began working together on sustainability issues a few years ago and have given consideration to a variety of different ideas. ‘We looked into using geothermal heat to generate energy, but the layers of the earth here aren’t porous enough for that. Biogas wasn’t an attractive option either, due to the fermentation of manure.’ When the vegetable growers attended a meeting organised by the municipality of Schouwen-Duiveland to examine how to make the island energy-neutral, they came into contact with foresters, campsite owners and other businesses that produce green and wood waste, and the idea to start a biomass plant was born. This would transform local green waste into sustainable energy for their greenhouses.

Wood chips are used as the basic material for heating the greenhouses and for producing the CO2 that the plants need to grow. In total the plant delivers 8 megawatts of heat, which is used to provide heating for 70% of the greenhouses. Producing that heat requires a substantial volume of wood chips, which are delivered daily by three trucks in the form of 100 tonnes of green waste. What remains after the wood chips are burnt is a pile of ashes. The aubergine grower would preferably use those ashes too, but notes that ‘farmers used to spread ashes on the soil, but aren’t allowed to do that anymore. We have taken samples though, so that we can investigate whether we can reuse the ashes.’

Storage shed containing wood chips and automatic crane system

Biomass plant with two CO2 spheres and heat buffers

Sustainable innovation
The smoke produced by the biomass plant is not dispersed into the air via a chimney, but is instead filtered and stored in two enormous spheres. Clean CO2 is then piped into the greenhouses, where it is mixed with air and encourages the growth of the plants. The project received a sustainable business grant to fund this innovation. ‘Each year the plant delivers a 12 million kg reduction in CO2 emissions from fossil fuels and saves 7 million m3 of gas,’ says Van Duijn. The project has cost around 9 million euros. ‘If everything goes to plan, we’ll recoup the cost of the system in 12 years.’

Further sustainability plans
Now that their biomass plant is up and running, the three growers are working on further sustainability plans. ‘The biomass plant needs energy, for instance to power its pumps. We’re going to generate this energy using solar panels. By the end of the year the roof of the plant room will be completely covered with 760 solar panels,’ the aubergine grower explains. In this way the three growers are completing the circle. ‘We’ve delivered something wonderful. All the local biomass is now being used to generate energy and heat our greenhouses.’

Sustainability central topic of Plantarium 2019

MPS was present again last week during the fair Plantarium, from 21-23 August 2019 in Boskoop. 'Green Fits All' was the slogan everything was centred around at this time.

Plantarium is the leading international tree nursery trade fair. Participants from 15 different countries and trade visitors from 48 countries underline the international nature of the fair and make Plantarium the leading wholesale market for tree nursery products in Europe.

MPS was present at Plantarium with a renewed fair stand to talk to growers about the latest developments in sustainability, innovative tools and certification in this field. Jasper van Diemen, coordinator the Netherlands MPS: “We notice that sustainability is a topical issue within this sector. Certification is looked at more and more as a tool and not as a goal to produce more sustainably and to lift business processes. to a higher level. We also notice a growing interest in our services from the tree nursery sector”.

Would you like to know more about certification, then please contact:
Jasper van Diemen, Commercial Coordinator the NetherlandsT +31 (0) 6 30 15 91 66EThis email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Jasper van Diemen (MPS) during Plantarium

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